Fighting For Our Destiny!

Destiny is no matter of chance. It is a matter of choice. It is not a thing to be waited for, it is a thing to be achieved.

- William Jennings Bryant

I read this quote and thought, "How true!". Then, while tapping away on my keyboard hoping to come closer and closer to the solution for every child being reached in every school, I heard these lines from the movie, "Groundhog Day":

Bill Murray asks his new buddies, "What would you do if you were stuck in one place and every day was exactly the same, and nothing that you did mattered?"

The guy next to him replies: "That about sums it up for me."

I know that especially as a teacher...and a parent (talking to my son about his behavior)...and even sometimes just as a human, I wonder if anything I'm doing really truly matters. We all do sometimes, waking up day after day and giving it all we got...and going to bed only to do it all over again in a few hours....telling ourselves that what doesn't kill us makes us stronger.........

Until one day we get up without "waking up", having given up our dreams and silently becoming content to go through the motions of life, feeling that nothing we do really matters.

"It just wasn't in the cards. It's not meant to be. It just wasn't in my destiny."

Or.....we continue to fight for what we feel burning so passionately in our hearts, refusing to give up....but tired and hurting so much we start wondering if it would be so bad if we were actually killed by our challenges.....because then at least the daily pain would stop. (firing the kids up with a burst of dramatic energy)

Now I don't have any suicidal thoughts...but sadly, too many do...and many more choose to live a living death......and that's not OK. Nor do I smash my alarm clocks at 3:30 am, but as the school year winds down I am unconsciously turning all five of them off and going back to bed without realizing it, my mind and body shutting down in rebellion against the tyranny of being pushed too far for too long by my spirit.

Some would say that's a sign to stop. I agree it's a sign of imbalance. But I also say that it's in these very moments for us, when we are broken and exhausted, unable to go any further, and realizing we might only be halfway to the finish line.....yet still choosing to get back up and complete what we started......that our destiny is determined.

This is where the choices we make really do matter. Do we give up? Or do we hold on to each other and our dreams? Although there's no guarantee, maybe, just maybe, I've held onto these kids long enough and strong enough in our time together this year that they'll hold onto themselves and their own dreams for the rest of their lives.....especially when it seems scary and too difficult to go on.

You will come to a place where the streets are not marked.
Some windows are lighted. But mostly they're dark.
A place that could sprain both elbow and chin!




Do you dare to stay out? Do you dare to go in?
How much can you lose? How much can you win?

- Dr. Seuss

If we make the choice to see every day as a chance to make some small improvement from the day before, then our lives do truly get better. And our choices of thought and action really do count....as each day becomes an investment in ourselves and others around us.

And if we're able to hold on for one more day at a time, having the courage to consciously recreate ourselves and our world, time does in fact change the reality in which we live. I am happy to say that once again, every single student has shown so much growth that every single student will be moving on to 6th grade.

Even with one child's parents fighting to have them held back next year, time has changed this child tremendously. Instead of falling yet further behind at the end of yet another year, this student has documented growth of OVER a year in ALL subjects, and as much as THREE years in reading and science. This child is actually catching up!!!!!

Once the parents were assured I would work with next year's teachers to prevent a falling through the cracks, everyone agreed with the promotion to 6th grade.

A new life has been achieved for this child; not by everyone waiting around for life to change, but by everyone, especially the child, making better choices day-after-day, time-after-time....and achieving a brighter destiny than ever in the time span of just 10 "short" months!

Here's an insightful take on how you can use the movie "Groundhog Day" to change your life. It's so simple, even a child can do it :-)